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ASEAN



Thai call for 'flexible engagement' on agenda
Foreign ministers to meet in Manila
Achara Ashayagachat and AFP (Bangkok Post, 7.18.1998.)

As Foreign Minister Surin Pitsuwan announced yesterday that the Thai call
for 'flexible engagement' among Asean members is to be discussed by the
grouping's foreign ministers in Manila next week, Malaysia launched a
broadside against the proposal.
 Malaysian Foreign Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi rejected Thailand's
call,saying that ASEAN had a unique "non-confrontational' way of solving it
problems to maintain dignity in line with the Asian culture, unlike the
European Union or other groupings. 
" If there are problems, we will overcome them our way in a manner which
does not undermine the dignity of any one and which shows that we are
sensitive over any incident which occurs,"he was quoted as saying yesterday
by Bernama news agency.
 Thailand's "flexible engagement" policy did, however, receive the support
of Japan yesterday." Some Asean nations such as Thailand and the
philippines have recently enunciated the policy for Asean to engage itself
flexibly in the problems within member states," foreign minister spokesman
Sadaaki Numata said.
 "This policy has been enunciated bearing Myanmar in mind. We hope that
such a move will lead to the promotion of democratisation and improvement
of human rights situation in Myanmar,"he said.
 Next week's foreign ministers meeting, to be held from July 24 to 29, will
discuss the regional financial crisis, the Cambodian election, the nuclear
stand-off between India and Pakistan, the Korean peninsula, and the South
China sea.
 Mr. Surin in particular quoted Indonesian and Singaporean support for the
plan. "Singapore's foreign minister Jayakumar told me that it was good to
take up the issue while Indonesian minister Ali Alatas said it was okay to
discuss it and suggested forgetting the lan-guage {terminology for
describing the new approach],"Mr. Surin said.
 Speaking after Mr. Alatas' reported opposition to the call, Mr. Surin
reiterated that Thailand was not asking Asean to abandon non-interference.
 But Mr. Surin maintained that there was a need for Asean to read-just
approach.
 "The non-interference principle still remains, as a member state we would
like to say what we think and to tell others not to include us in matters
that we disagree with or to take our supprot for granted,"he said.